Too Close To Losing You
by StrawberryCrush
Summary: "Now that the dust had settled, the adrenaline had worn off, there was nothing left but raw, unfiltered emotion."


**Based on the events of 1x03 and 2x09. Post 2x12 and 2x13.**

***throws fic at fandom and walks away***

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Hen thought of herself as a strong person. She was a strong person. She didn't do emotion very often. Not to say she was afraid of emotion or vulnerability, she was sentimental and passionate, but emotional was not a word she would use to describe herself.

Until now.

Here she was, sitting in one of the most uncomfortable chairs she ever sat in looking down at her best friend. Bandages and wires covered his body. He looked so pale and fragile, nothing like the lively, silly man she'd come to know and love. It was breaking her.

She wanted to cry, yell, scream, curse, something to let out everything that was going on inside of her. Now that the dust had settled, the adrenaline had worn off, there was nothing left but raw, unfiltered emotion.

First the accident, now this. She was hurt and angry.

She knew it was irrational, the anger. He survived, still alive. She should be overjoyed, but, in the moment, she couldn't think of nothing but the accident and what that fucker did to him. Why did this happen? She knew, logically, that she'll never know the answer, but it still drove her crazy.

She just wondered how much more her friend could take. How much more she could take.

"Hen," his groggy voice startled her out of her thoughts, "I wondered when I would finally see you."

"I was gonna come earlier, but Maddie was in here. So I just decided to wait a bit."

"I'm happy that you did, but it's gotta be late by now." Chimney said as he rubbed his eyes. She struggled to tamp down on the emotion she felt as she watched him wince in pain trying to turn towards her. "Karen and Denny are probably wondering where you are."

"It's a little after midnight, but it's fine. They know. Speaking of," Hen pulled out her phone and scrolled until she found what she was looking for, "Karen sent me this to show you."

Chim smiled as he watched the video of Denny telling "Uncle Chimney" to get well soon.

Hen thought about how her son loved his uncle and how upset he was when she told him that he was hurt again. She pasted on a smile and quickly wiped away the tears away from her face, hoping he wouldn't notice.

"Ar-are you crying?"

He had.

"No. It's cool. I'm fine." Hen sniffed, quickly took the phone out of Chimney's grasp, closed the video, and fidgeted with it. Anything to avoid looking him in the eye.

"Hen."

"Let's just-"

"Henrietta," the statement of her full name gave her pause, "look at me, please."

She put her phone down and looked up at him, meeting his eyes. She hated the worry that she saw in them. The last thing he needed to be worrying about was her.

"What's going on inside that head of yours?" He asked her.

Talking about her feelings was still not something that Hen found easy. She knew she needed to talk about this, to say it out loud. "It's just, I think it's finally starting to hit me, how close we came to, um, losing you today," she quickly caught the tears in the corners of her eyes, "it's stupid."

"No, it's not Hen. Not at all."

"Yeah, it kind of is," she sighed, "I mean, we save lives for a living, continuously put ourselves in dangerous situations for others... I don't know why this is so different, why it's affecting me so much," She said as she chuckled mirthlessly.

"We don't really think about stuff like this until it happens. I know I don't," he told her as he covered her hand with his. "This is the second time, in a little over a year, that I've had near death experience, like life flashing before my eyes close call. I don't pretend to understand how or why, I'm just thankful that I'm still alive."

"So am I," she gave him a small smile before saying, "you're my best friend Chim. A lot of the shit I've been through over the last decade, you've been there with me. You're one of the few constants in my life. Losing you would be like losing a part of me."

"Aw, Hen, I love you, too," Chim told her sweetly. She knew he meant it, but he also knew that he was trying to lighten the mood.

"Shut up," Hen laughed, "you know this is the last time you're allowed to scare me like this, Superman."

"Ha, Superman, I wish. Trust me, this is the last time I even want to see the inside of a hospital. I've had more than enough for a lifetime." She and him both. With a serious look on his face he said, "it's gonna be fine. I'll be out of here soon and you'll bossing me around the fire station before you know it. I just want to make sure you're good."

"Yeah, I'm good."

The anger and emotion were still there, but it had definitely lessened. She could harp, try to figure out the reasons behind what happened, the how and the why, or she could just enjoy the fact that Chimney was still with them, with her. For now, she's chosen the latter.

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**Hope you liked it! Tell me what you think, I always love and appreciate feedback!**

**'Til next time, stay wonderful!**


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